//------------------------------// // 6) Little Black Bird // Story: ”Wait, I’ve Slept For How Long?” // by Mornings Dew //------------------------------// ”Smoky— Black! Foal!” Three Days Earlier The Crystal Guard tried to speak as he wheezed his ragged breaths. Sweat trickled down his brow as his legs quivered. Innocent laughter drowned the quiet huffs and puffs as a foal bit on the out-of-breath guard’s ear with it’s toothless gums. As the foal sat on the hacking Crystal Guard’s back, a stallion sat behind a wooden desk and stared incredulously at the rasping guard in front of him. The stallion, blinking greatly with confusion, has a much bigger build than the one carrying a giggling foal, and has much less experience compared to the stressed guard. His blue streaked mane drooped beside his eyes as they blinked rapidly, the white-coated stallion stumbling to find out what was happening and why a single foal caused his lookout’s apparent problem. But he couldn’t help the distressed guy if all he said were three words. After what seemed an eternity, Captain Shining Armor, a happily married husband, spoke four words as he sat on his chair to the guard that finally caught his breath, albeit still a bit winded. ”… Care to repeat that?” The guard’s heart continued to thump quickly, partly from adrenaline and partly from embarrassment. Rocket Bullseye, the aforementioned guard kneeling before his captain, had ran from one end of the Crystal Empire; he gets stationed at one of the lookouts with his partner Smoky Comet, nine to usually twelve times a month. Today is… well, was one of those days, and it was like every other day: normal, as always, until… uh… Huh. The silence stretched and his sweat dripped as he hesitated. He took a breath to calm his panicked heart to— hopefully— start fearlessly. ”Er… He… Uh…” Well… Okay, it was bad, he just… has no idea on how to describe what happened. The Captain cut him off. ”Okay, okay.” he calmly said. Shining Armor raised his hooves to address his guard. ”Take a deep breath,” Shining instructed, slowly placing his hooves on his desk, ”and please, calmly explain what happened.” Confused, baby blue eyes started into a single yellow one, the other closed shut. The foal that laid on his back laughed and reached out with a tiny navy-colored hoof at a little bird perched on the other side of one of the office’s windows. The little bird tilted it’s small feathery head as it watched with it’s black marble eyes. Atop one of many lookout towers, two watching guards stood opposite of each other, surveying the area and dirt paths that lead to the gates about forty-seven yards behind them. Rocket Bullseye silently sighed, not wanting to alert his work partner and since-birth best friend. On the Monday, Friday and Saturday of every week, he would guard the gates from the afternoon till dusk with his old buddy, Smoky Comet. He quite enjoyed this side job. It was always quiet and calm, unlike his main job, which was basically making every explosive in the book. In the soft silence, he also enjoyed the comforting presence of a friend. It was never like the old days, years and years back, where a quite minute between guards was a miracle from Celestia. He isn’t too old, just a retired Day Guard of Canterlot. A veteran that loyally served over ten years to the crown. Ever since the Crystal Empire reappeared however, he was one of the many guards that ’volunteered’ to join the accumulating numbers. Which also meant he had to live in the Crystal Empire. Well, it’s too late to think about that now, he was meaning to move from Fillydelfia anyway. His life was getting boring, and he doesn't go too well with boredom. The peaceful atmosphere weaved into the soft drafts that hardly ruffled his flame-themed mane, unseen by the enchanted guard outfit clinging on his lightly muscular body. The blue sky was in stallion’s sights, and like most boring days, thought of what his life could have been if he hadn’t accepted that business card. He was never born in Equestria, if you can believe that. A whisper interjected his curious thoughts. ”Hey, Red.” Rocket’s sharp left ear flicked, not because of the abnormal softness in the voice of his equal, but rather in irritation. If he wanted to speak, why didn’t he talk earlier? They spoke with each other right before their shift so that something like this didn’t happen, since he’d like to keep this job. It was one of the few things that helped keep the insanity at bay. Nevertheless, he didn’t fail to reply. His concern for his friend not out of mind. ”What is it?” He replied quietly. The quicker this ends, that faster it’ll once more be silent. ”Have you…” Smoky paused to collect his thoughts. ”Do you… You remember Gupi, right?” The hard-headed stallion blinked at the absurdity of his friend’s question. ”You mean your pet fish?” A short clank of armor proclaimed Smoky’s sharp nod. ”… Yes?” ”Do you think I should get him a friend fish?” Right then, Smoky went back to his usual cheery tone, unlike his, now gone, quite softness. Grumpy at the fact that he fell into his friend’s fourth trap this week, Rocket grumbled a retort as he narrowed his eyes. ”You should get a pet cat to eat Gupi. Then it’ll run away because you’re so annoying.” He snorted the second time that day, irritated, both caused by that lousy and not to mention bucking annoying slacker. Smoky Comet, a stallion with serious issues, snorted as an attempt to stifle his laughter. ”Don’t be like that, Bullsy! Just pullin’ your tail! But you’re a big and strong stallion, right~?” Smoky teased with a singing voice. ”You can handle it.” The beyond irked stallion shifted his gaze to glance at the pest. ”Don’t you dare call me that!” He harshly whispered. ”You know I hate that name.” Smoky suddenly gasped. ”Ooooh!” He yelled. ”You said the h-word!” ”Shhh! Not so loud!” Rocket warned. ”You’re just mad that you have a terrible name.” The insane child entertainer laughed. He sounded quite proud. ”I swear to Celestia, something is very wrong with you.” ”Nothing quite like your anger issues though, Bullsy.” Rocket sighed tiredly. ”Oh my Celestia.” The merciful embrace of calm and quiet would feel very nice right then. Don’t think there is any other example as to why he loves silence to much. He was stuck with the fool. Smoky just knew how to push all the wrong buttons. The fact that he is doing it on purpose made him more upset. As soon as it fled it returned. The silence shortly came back to soothing his mind. The silence didn’t last long however. A sudden flutter of wings hovered above the post, prompting both the lookout’s ears to twitch. Since the Crystal Empire’s arrival and it’s necessary cleansing of evil kings, its been a large tourist spot. Nothing surprising there, for obvious reasons. With it came the lost knowledge of the Empire and it’s quarks. Modern ponies noted the drastic difference of homes. The Crystal Heart began to be the marvel of the Empire and became widely known as the Lost Relic of Crystal Millennium, the fragile, priceless artifact that was doomed to disappear for a thousand years. From its many visitors, certain things the Crystal Empire became know by surfaced, ’fun facts’ if you will. One of the lesser known but incredibly unique ones, is that the Empire had a lack of any bird. The only local animals were ones that can survive the harsh temperatures of the Northern Snow, making then strong and admirable beasts that can easily cause damage in a rampage; One of the lesser known reasons for the most magically strengthened Guard Shield known to Ponydom that surrounds the Empire. Of course, there are animals who are brought from the rest of the world, so that they can provide necessities for the Crystal Empire’s citizens. It took all of three seconds for Bullseye to acknowledge this, and immediately threw his sights above. At the moment, he was worried if they had be caught talking two minutes before, and a fellow Pegasus Crystal Guard had arrived to collect them. … Nothing. Rocket blinked in confusion. He was expecting an angry expression of disappointment from a guard, or a slight frown of pity, perhaps. So where was the guard? Who was going to pick them up to take them back to the barracks? What flapped just now? Smoky narrowed his eyes as he looked around at the sky. ”Hey, you think they finally put birds in this shiny bowl of ours?” ”I suppose. You’d think we’d know.” He didn’t bother to correct his companion’s minor insult to the Empire. He would sometimes hear the ’slang’ around the Empire’s corners, but usually said nothing, since it was also used by the Crystal Ponies. Celestia, today he was just tired. Grinning, the stallion stood slightly taller on his tippy hooves as he arched his neck, zipping his vision across the clear blue sky. ”Yeah, I guess. Hey, you want count how many birds we see? Whoever sees more wins~!” Like usual, Rocket ignored Smoky, and rubbed a hoof on his chin. ”But why? There aren't that many trees here. They would have no home if birds suddenly popped up. That makes no sense though… How would they fly through the blizzards to get here…? And the barrier, that would stop them from getting through. Unless they went through the train’s gates?” After all the attention the Empire was and still is getting, Princess Cadence decided to move the train’s tracks so that they entered through the shield for safer transportation. That meant the shield needed to have a specific weak point for the trains to pass. That’s where the Crystal Gate appeared. It’s not actually made of crystal. It’s made of a material that, when on contact, the Crystal Heart’s magic is nearly completely repelled, however not entirely. No pony except the Princesses know what the gate is made of, which makes sense. No leader wants an enemy to know a weakness to their protection. Talking advantage of the present aura that did pass the gate to it’s center, Prince Shining Armor, with a bit of help from the newest crowned princess, Princess Twilight, weaved an advanced spell that relied off slight magic from the Heart. Similar to Canterlot, the Gate can detect good or bad intent. Intent is a magic-related term used mostly to ’code’ magic spells. Basically, an Intent Spell, as it’s called, casted upon the gate to keep baddies out. Rocket chuckled lightly as he continued rubbing his stubbly furred chin. As well as his ego. He remembered being the top of his class in Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns. He always knew his stuff. Mainly because he’d get extra Desert at the end of the week if his grades were really, really good. And he has a pretty good memory, unlike his older brother. He’d once had three scoops of extra Strawberry Ice Cream and just a dabble of Chocolate Ice Cream, since it isn’t the greatest to consume(mostly for ponies, unfortunately). He enjoyed watching the jealous faces of his siblings. Their faces and extras after dinner were basically his motivation in his early years of school. It wasn’t until he matured a little after about two to three and a half years and fell into that ’hard worker’ mentality that extra after dinner deserts was a just a really nice bonus. And his sister’s faces after his brother moved out, that too. Heh. Mostly forgetting about the sound of flapping wings, Bullseye repositioned to his ”Lookout Position” and proceeded to continue guarding. Only to, once again, be interrupted by that crazy stallion. ”Hey, Bullsy~!” The navy blue colored stallion sing-songed. ”How many birds did ya count?” Sighing once again, like every other time, Rocket wilted a bit. ”None.” A hoof shot into the air. ”Alright! I won!” Rocket’s eyes widened. ”What? You mean—?” ”Yup!” His golden armor clanged against each other again, indicating another nod from the entertainer. ”I saw eight of them!” Bullseye nearly fell over. ”What’s funny though, is that they were all black and acting a bit creepy. I was hoping for some Macaws or something!” He huffed indignity. ”I swear, sometimes I'm the only one with good tastes for birds in this world.” Puzzled, Rocket looked up, searching for the birds Smoky apparently caught flapping around. He knew Smoky would never lie, so he couldn't be wasting his time looking for non-existent black birds. About a minute passed. He clicked his tongue on his unsuccessful search. ”Where’d you see them?” Rocket asked his partner. ”Oh! They’re just over there…!” Smoky replied happily, making sure Bullseye was watching at where he was pointing. Looking back, the entertainer realized something. ”Oh hey! There are more of them.” Rocket’s eyes continued to widen as he realized something Smoky didn’t at that moment. ”And… they’re heading toward… us.” He finished, increasingly alarmed as the unexpectedly multiplying flock of black birds are flying at them at equally alarming speeds. Smoky blinked. ”Huh, would ya look at that, Red. You’re right, they’re doing exactly that.” He acknowledged a moment after. Rocket hooked his foreleg around Smoky’s. ”Which means we should move!” Yelped the more responsible of the two. Comet nearly fell over pulling his hoof back. ”Aw, come on, Red! What are a bunch of birds going to do? I’m not scared of them like you are. Besides, I'm a Pegasus! I’m sure I can have a nice talk with them.” ”That is very racist. Move, idiot!” Smoky flared his wings. ”Hold on, dude. They won’t do anything!” ”You don’t know that! They look aggressive!” He nearly slapped the slacker. ”Do they—? Woah!” Black filled their worlds as the small birds flowed like an inky river around them. Their ears nearly rang from the sharp flaps that emitted from them; They hardly looked like birds anymore, though. Rocket hovered low to the ground, ready to bolt the moment the chance came. His heart proceeded to hammer against his ribs. Cold sweat began to run down his neck, much to his dissatisfaction, though that was the last thing he was concerned about. His thoughts jumbled incoherently. ’These can’t be birds…’ He squinted, trying to see through the birds, if he can even call them that anymore. One thing’s certain however. These aren’t normal birds. Meaning he had to be very cautious; he has to act like his life is in danger if he wants to get out. He ignited his horn, trying to startle the cursed things. When that didn't work, he charged his horn for a Flash Spell. He hasn't been hurt from the birds yet, not exactly, so there was no reason to harm them. However he did feel pretty threatened. He has gotten just a couple scratches perhaps. Let’s hope Smoky is the same. ”Ow! Hey! Wings off—! Ouch!” Shrieked Comet. Well, that did not last at all. Issuing the charged spell through his horn, light ricocheted off Smoky’s golden armor, though it didn’t do much at all. He tried to flash light at the birds instead, in an effort to control the situation a little, perhaps even salvage it. Nothing. So, that’s a fail. His spell is completely useless. ’Buck!’ Bullseye tried to see through the black blur. ”Smoky!” ”I-I’m okay! I think—! Ow! Stop! Stop it!” Smoky seemed to fight back with his wings. Needless to say, he was definitely struggling. ”Um, forget what I said! I totally need some help— Ow! A lot! I need a lot of help like, right now!” Comet screeched his last words. And apparently, he literally did. Smoky’s struggle suddenly stopped. His grunts faded away. He screamed. Rocket’s widened eyes watered slightly, and he didn't know why. ”S-Smoky? Smoky! Comet! What is it doing to you?!” It didn't take long to find out, unfortunately. Loud clangs hit the Lookout Tower’s tallest floor, completely out of the blue from the flapping ruckus. That just made the hard-headed stallion even more worried. Bullseye’s calls were so raw they hurt his throat. ”Smoky! Smoky?! Come on, Comi! Please answer me! Are you okay?” He was so desperate, he called his old friend his old foalhood nickname. In a last desperate effort, Rocket practically fired a white-hot laser from his flashing horn at the swirling mass of blackness. As soon as it hit, a wave spread outwards from the hit as the screaming mass broke apart into these tiny floating blobs. Broken appart, it scared away the the Celestia-damned things. Moments later they all accumulated into one large blob after spasming mid-air from the massive discharge of the magical blast. He hissed as light finally flashed at his eyes, so he turned his head in an attempt to make it less painful. He heard the mass zip away, a few caws being yelled as it did. Oh boy, PTSD, here it comes. Once his eyes adjusted to the light, he searched around for Smoky, albeit slowly. ”Smoky!” His concern was drowning him at this point. He looked at where his companion was last. ”Smo—!” His yells died right then. There, around the full armor of a Pegasus Crystal Guard, was a foal. Smoky Comet, the silly entertainer, was now a foal. A bucking foal. It lied on the ground, fast asleep. Rocket’s brain just… stopped. It then rebooted, played the events of the lest minute and a half, and began panicking. ”Nononononono. There’s no way… There’s no way! There is no way! How?!” Okay— Okay, okay. Let’s just… think logically for a moment. Uh, alright, just… What’s he supposed to do with a foal? A friend-turned-foal no less. … The Captain! He’ll know what to do! He’s really good at magic, right? Yes! This is an emergency. Taking a deep, deep breath, he tiphoofs toward the small thing. Unmoving, the tiny foal continues to peacefully slumber. He paused for a moment, watching the formerly full-grown stallion. Craning his neck downward, he softly grabbed the foal’s scruff between his teeth. Rocket gently elevated the Smoky-turned-foal and placed him on his back. He would teleport, but that would be too dangerous and it’s commonly frowned upon to teleport with a foal. Unless of course you and the foal are in immediate danger. Bullseye sighed, hoping that this day wouldn’t be any weirder and just end. I mean, he likes strange oddities— it makes his life more interesting— but that was too much. Especially since... well, his foalhood friend got turned back into a foal. He never thought he would ever think that. He sighed heavily as he quickly went down the steps leading to the ground floor of the Lookout Tower… Hey, look at the bright side, at least he gets to joke about this once Smoky get back to normal. Heh. Uh… right? … Sure, yeah.